Up to 4,000 passengers hit as Orient Thai Airlines cancels service between Hong Kong and Bangkok for 10 days for ‘safety’ reasons
Passengers booked on budget airline forced to find scarce seats with other carriers
PUBLISHED : Friday, 11 March, 2016, 4:22pm
UPDATED : Friday, 11 March, 2016, 4:26pm
Phila Siu
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Bangkok’s street stalls are a big hit with Hong Kong travellers. Photo: AFP
Orient Thai Airlines has cancelled all flights between Hong Kong and Bangkok until Saturday next week due to “mechanical problems”, affecting possibly 4,000 passengers.
Joseph Tung Yao-chung, executive director of the Travel Industry Council, the travel industry watchdog, said about 2,000 people from 100 package tours were affected.
But the actual number of passengers affected by the 10-day cancellation, which started on Thursday, could be about 4,000 because the Bangkok-based budget airline is popular among solo travellers.
“The plane the airline uses is a Boeing 747, which can carry about 400 passengers on each flight. The cancellation can affect up to some 4,000 passengers,” Tung said.
“I was informed by the travel agencies that the airline has cancelled the flights because there is some sort of mechanical problems with the plane.”
The airline only has one plane to fly the route, he added.
Tung said it might be difficult for travel agencies to book customers on other flights because there are not many seats left on other airlines.
Bangkok is a popular destination among Hong Kong people for its all-year summer climate and street food.
The Post had not been able to get through on the phone to speak to the airline but a customer services employee told TVB the cancellation was due to safety reasons. Passengers would be refunded their tickets but the airline was not responsible for expenses such as hotel accommodation.
